


Reassurances

by AConspiracyOfRavens



Category: Mass Effect Trilogy
Genre: F/M, Gen, Pre-Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-30
Updated: 2019-10-30
Packaged: 2021-01-13 11:23:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 487
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21243290
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AConspiracyOfRavens/pseuds/AConspiracyOfRavens
Summary: Sometimes even the most unlikely people need reassurance.





	Reassurances

**Author's Note:**

> Just some midnight ramblings that wouldn’t leave me alone.

She flinches when she looks at his covered scar.

Her hand flexes, and Garrus is never sure what she wants to do as something flashes in her eyes; he tells himself it’s not disgust, but he has trouble believing it. It’s subtle, and she does try to control it if there’s anyone else present, but it’s a very distinct shiver.

It’s when she reaches out to him, rests her hand against his damaged, ruined, mandible and flinches that the dread filling up his gizzard is turned into shame.

“Yeah, the damage is... it’s bad,” he says in the space in between them, “it’s worse under the bandage.”

“I remember,” she murmurs, fingers twitching at her side.

“It’s disgusting.” He says.

“Everytime I look at it, I remember just how close I came to losing you.” She shakes her head, as if shaking a loose strand of keratin - hair - out of her eyes, thought it may just be her thoughts. “Every time I look at it, I get the urge to touch it, just to make sure you’re ok... but you’re ok. I can see, and I keep thinking I’ll hurt you.” She shrugs, leaning back against the containers full of mission supplies. “I don’t know why I keep doing it.”

He blinks at her, the shame disappearing from his gut, leaving something warm in its place, he’s afraid to think too much on it.

“You can touch it,” he blurts out. The wound hurts sometimes, and the recovery is slow going, but Chackwas has him on the good meds, even if on extremely limited doses. “It doesn’t hurt, not with the bandage on, anyway.”

“Are you sure?” She’s eager, and yet something flashes in her wide eyes, and he begins to think that it isn’t disgust he sees, it’s not avoidance.

It’s terror, for him out of all sentients.

“It usually hurts when the meds are starting to wear off,” he admits, taking a step closer, he suddenly just really needs her hand on his face, he wants it. “But I have taken my dose an hour ago, so I’m fine now.”

She doesn’t answer him verbally. Her hand comes to rest on his bandage and for a wild moment he thinks he can feel the warm of her palm. He can’t feel it, truly, but he can see the gentleness in her eyes and how she closes them and takes a deep, reassuring breath. “You worry me sometimes, Garrus. I never know where your boundaries are.”

There’s a moment of stillness between them, a standstill, a fork in the road, before they’re both laughing at the inadverted pun.

“I’m here Shepard.”

“I know.” It’s the gentlest, most genuine smile he has ever seen on her face. For him, out of all people.

“I’m right here.” He repeats.

In all his worry, in all his shame and horror, he had never imagined she would need reassurance too.


End file.
